THE Curated COTTAGE

A farmer with a passion for design and his artist wife turned their derelict old cottage into a moody and magical country retreat.

- Georgia Madden

The little circa-1850 settler’s cottage on Rob and Marnie’s farm in the Barossa Valley, SA, had stood empty and untouched since they bought the property eight years prior. But when the couple decided to embark on an extensive renovation of the main residence, which they share with their two children, aged 12 and 15, they began to explore the idea of turning the cottage into a comfortable home that would see them through a year or two of construction, and later rent it out as an Airbnb.

Initially, the near-derelict state of the three-bedroom, one-bathroom cottage made them question if it was even worth it. “It had no running water and was barely habitable – we had to decide whether to push it over or renovate,” says Rob. The discovery of beautiful and historical ballast stone walls, hidden beneath layers of plaster render, helped sway them towards the decision to restore and remodel.

Rather than a hasty patch job, farmer and 20th-century design aficionado Rob and professional artist Marnie, decided to pool their creative talents and make something beautiful that would endure. The pair reached out to architect David Burton and interior designer Sophia Leopardi at Williams Burton Leopardi to help them realise their vision for a simple, honest and thoughtfully designed home – one that would also make the most of its picturesque views towards a neighbouring vineyard and paddocks filled with horses, sheep and the occasional grazing kangaroo.